Andhra Pradesh ports steering growth

Ports have always known to be a key driver of economic growth. And this is true for Andhra Pradesh too.

Considered to be the second-highest cargo handling State in India and bestowed with the second largest coastline of 970 km, Andhra Pradesh owes a significant slice of its economic growth to its ports.

Ports also played a key role in doubling exports from Andhra Pradesh from Rs 40,601 crore in 2006-07 to Rs 76,868 crore in 2009-10.

Apart from having India's premier port in terms of cargo throughput, Visakhapatnam port, which handles 65 million tonnes of cargoes, the State also has the deepest draft port, Gangavaram port. This apart, the State has two operational non-major ports — Kakinada, with a capacity of 10 mt and Krishnapatnam (15 mt).

Minor ports

Another two, Machilipatnam, with a proposed capacity of 20 mt and Nizapatnam (15 mt) are in the process of being developed.

In fact, the State may well get a new major port, with the Union Shipping Ministry recently indicating that one of its two proposed major ports on both the coasts may be located in Andhra Pradesh. The State Government has already held initial discussions on the proposal with the Shipping Ministry.

Maritime Agenda 2010-20

This is part of the Maritime Agenda 2010-20 unveiled recently, which envisages two new major ports and two hub ports on the east and west coasts. The Shipping Ministry will also be drafting port policy measures for the ten year period, which includes providing greater autonomy and corporatisation of the 13 major ports, including Visakhapatnam port.

Vision 2020

The Government is targeting a port capacity of 2,500 mt by 2020.

On its part, the Andhra Pradesh Government has prepared a perspective development plan in its vision 2020 document for development of ports, which seeks to enhance the cargo handling capacity of its non-major ports to 173 mt by 2020.

The Visakhapatnam-Kakinada zone, identified by the Andhra Pradesh Government as one of the most potential and promising ones in the State, is set to witness a sea change in the future in terms of infrastructure development and industrialisation.

The two ports - Visakhapatnam and Kakinada - besides Gangavaram port, is expected to stimulate growth in this area and attract investment on a large scale.

SEZs

There are several major SEZs in the zone, such as the multi-product SEZ at Atchyuthapuram in Visakhapatnam district and the Kakinada special economic zone (KSEZ), while the Union Government has sanctioned a petroleum, petro-chemical investment region (PCPIR) between the two port towns. IT SEZs are also coming up in the region. Visakhapatnam port, in the public sector, has drawn up an ambitious expansion programme to augment its capacity and to face the competition from private ports in the vicinity, with a total investment of Rs 3,000-3,500 crore.

The upgrading of the outer harbour general cargo berth (GCB) to handle two-lakh DWT vessels, the strengthening of the inner harbour berths and construction of new berths are some of the projects.

These projects are being taken up in the public-private partnership mode. Mechanised coal handling facilities are being set up to reduce pollution and increase the efficiency of operations.

The Visakhapatnam port, which presently handles 65 mt, has proposed to double the capacity after the completion of the projects in progress.

The port relies mainly on bulk cargoes such iron ore and coal and in future the cargo profile may change with the establishment of new projects in the hinterland.

Gangavaram port

Gangavaram port has come up in the private sector with five berths and the new port, located in the backyard of the Visakhapatnam steel plant, has taken away a substantial chunk of cargo, 5 million tonnes or more, from the Visakhapatnam port. The Gangavaram port, with the deepest draft in the country (21 m.), is capable of handling the bigger vessels and has set up mechanised coal handling facilities.

Only recently, it touched a significant milestone when it discharged 65,349 tonnes of coking coal in a single day. “This discharge rate achieved is more than three times the discharge rate achieved at any other Indian port,” a company official said.

The port, which has five deep draft berths, has handled over 28 million tonnes of cargo since commencement of operations. It has handled over 600 vessels, including about 45 large capsize vessels of average 150,000 DWT. It had also handled the largest bulk vessel to have ever called at any Indian port due thanks to its deep-draft facility.

“The port ensures almost zero pre-berthing delay, ensuring congestion free operations. We handle a range of commodities such as coking and non-coking coal, iron ore, limestone, bauxite, steel, raw sugar, project cargo, slag and scrap,” the official added.

The Kakinada deep-water port, with four berths, handles iron ore, granite, fertilisers and edible oils. It handles 10 mt a year and its capacity will increase with two more berths under construction. The port was built by the State Government with Rs 350 crore loan from the ADB and subsequently handed over to the Kakinada Seaports Limited for operation on long lease.

Rice exports

The Kakinada anchorage port, however, is in dire straits. The old port relies on rice exports mainly for its sustenance and survival. With the banning of export of non-basmati rice, the port is facing great difficulty for the past two years. There is a proposal to set up another port - a captive one for the Kakinada Special Economic Zone - in Thondangi mandal in East Godavari district.

Krishnapatnam port

Krishnapatnam port is another port that is making waves as well, especially as it has a draft of 15.5 m and a waterfront area of 161 sq km, one of the largest in India. Its cargo throughput almost doubled from 8.21 mt in 2008-09 to 16.13 mt in 2009-10, with the port expecting a significant increase in the current fiscal.

The port has on its drawing board a Rs 4,000-crore expansion plan, which involves addition of seven berths to its existing 10 multi-purpose berths. After this expansion, the port will have six dedicated coal berths with two ship unloaders a berth. “The port is set to become a major coal hub of India, with a total of 14,000 MW installed capacity within 10 km radius of the port.

The upcoming power projects in its vicinity will require coal of over 60 mt an annum, while another 20 mt is required for existing power, cement and steel plants in the hinterland,” an official of the port said.

Thus, ports in Andhra Pradesh will continue to play a crucial role in steering the State higher up the ladder of economic development.